Just then, the fourth trainee parent, Sun Siyuan, arrived.
The parent-and-child family originally scheduled to appear had been unable to come because something had come up, so the production team had invited a single trainee parent at the last minute. They hadn't found him a little partner, hoping he would gain some insights of his own by observing how the other parents and children interacted.
They were also worried about something going wrong on the broadcast.
Sun Siyuan's reputation in the entertainment industry was only a little better than Su Huaiming's, but he had a powerful background and exceptionally good resources. Unlike Su Huaiming, he wasn't a washed-up celebrity.
Sun Siyuan had been spoiled since childhood and had a severe case of prince syndrome. He took it for granted that everyone should look after him and indulge him. He often acted superior and spoke in an arrogant tone.
Most people disliked Sun Siyuan's personality, but some thought he was genuine and never put on an act. He was also good at what he did, and over time, he had gained quite a few fans.
When the official announcement was made, Su Huaiming had drawn most of the fire, but some people had criticized Sun Siyuan too.
Sun Siyuan was mentally tough and never cared about online trolls or nasty comments. The more netizens opposed him, the more he wanted to appear on the parenting show.
Sun Siyuan was very fashionable, dressed head to toe in designer clothes. Combined with his naturally princely air, he seemed to shine.
Sun Siyuan glanced around, saw only Su Huaiming, and frowned slightly.
The viewers in the livestream were thrilled to see this.
[Villain versus villain, this is going to be great!]
[Fight, fight, fight, fight!]
[Place your bets! Who do you think will win, Su Huaiming or Sun Siyuan?]
[Sun Siyuan's personality is annoying, but he's open and honest. Su Huaiming is the scheming type, so I think Su Huaiming will win.]
[Sun Siyuan has met all kinds of people since he was little. He's a shrewd judge of character, so Su Huaiming's little schemes probably won't fool him.]
[Looks like they're evenly matched. I can't wait for this first battle!]
Sun Siyuan took off his sunglasses and lifted his chin toward Su Huaiming. "You're that what's-his-name, right?"
Su Huaiming's blood sugar was dangerously low. His heart was racing, his hands felt weak, and black spots flashed before his eyes. He had no time to deal with Sun Siyuan.
Being ignored like that made Sun Siyuan even more displeased. He stepped in front of Su Huaiming and said, "Take my luggage upstairs for me."
Su Huaiming's head was foggy. He just wanted to get rid of this annoying guy and go upstairs to get some candy, but the man wouldn't stop yapping.
His muddled brain couldn't make sense of the situation, and Su Huaiming instinctively felt that if he just did what the man wanted, he could go upstairs and get his candy.
Without thinking much of it, Su Huaiming picked up the suitcase and headed upstairs.
Seeing that Su Huaiming knew what was expected of him, Sun Siyuan followed, satisfied.
Sun Siyuan's suitcase was large and heavy. Su Huaiming had only climbed three steps when he lurched sideways against the railing, and the suitcase crashed heavily to the floor.
At the sound, Sun Siyuan hurried after it, distressed, to see whether his suitcase had been damaged.
"How are you carrying—" Sun Siyuan was about to lose his temper when Su Huaiming raised his head.
After walking only a few short steps, Su Huaiming was covered in cold sweat, his whole face damp.
The stray hairs at his temples were wet with cold sweat and clumped into strands. His lips had turned a vivid red, as though they might drip blood, and a faint pink tinged the skin around his eyes. His gaze was unfocused, his pupils no longer able to focus.
Sun Siyuan's words caught in his throat, and he was completely dumbfounded.
Su Huaiming leaned against the railing, without an ounce of strength in his body, and slowly slid down.
Sun Siyuan panicked completely. Forgetting everything else, he kicked his precious suitcase aside and caught Su Huaiming by the arm. "What happened to you all of a sudden? Do you need to go to the hospital?"
Seeing that the sofa was closest, Sun Siyuan helped him over to it.
Su Huaiming's breathing was heavy and uneven, and glistening droplets clung to his eyelashes. "I... I'm fine. My blood sugar's just a little low. Do... do you have any candy?"
Sun Siyuan was so anxious he stammered. "I-I-I-I have chocolate. Will that do?"
Su Huaiming nodded with difficulty.
Sun Siyuan hurriedly dragged his suitcase down, rummaged through his clothes until they were a mess, and brought back the chocolate as fast as he could.
Sun Siyuan had never waited on anyone before, but this time he tore open the chocolate wrapper and considerately held it to Su Huaiming's mouth.
Su Huaiming was already close to losing consciousness. He slowly opened his mouth and bit off a piece of chocolate.
Seeing how miserable Su Huaiming was and how slowly he was biting, Sun Siyuan wished he could eat the chocolate for him.
Su Huaiming had a slender frame and looked small curled up on the sofa. His collar slipped to one side with his movements, revealing a slightly protruding collarbone.
His shirt was damp with sweat too, clinging to his skin and turning translucent.
There wasn't a trace of color in Su Huaiming's skin, yet his cheeks and the corners of his eyes bore an unhealthy flush. His chest rose and fell unevenly, and his breathing was somewhat heavy.
He looked like he was at death's door! Sun Siyuan was frightened out of his wits and asked anxiously, "Are you okay? Do you really not need to go to the hospital?"
Su Huaiming's mind was still muddled. For some reason, he suddenly remembered Fu Xiao Xiao, who had run off to play somewhere else, and said with difficulty, "I... I'm fine. I'm worried about Xiao Xiao. C-can you help me find him?"
Sun Siyuan: "..."
Why does he sound like he's giving his last wishes?!!
Seeing Su Huaiming close his eyes, Sun Siyuan dropped to his knees and shook his arm, nearly crying with anxiety.
"Hang on a little longer! If you die, I'll never be able to explain myself! I'm still so young. I can't have a death on my hands and spend the rest of my life in prison!!"
Chapter 8: 008
As soon as Sun Siyuan finished speaking, Su Huaiming opened his eyes.
Their eyes met. It was a little awkward.
This body was too weak and prone to breaking out in cold sweat, which was why his symptoms looked a little exaggerated. But to Su Huaiming, who had experienced real illness and death, this was nothing.
Seeing how panicked Sun Siyuan was, Su Huaiming felt a pang of sympathy. He tried to lift his hand to pat Sun Siyuan on the shoulder, but in the end, his fingers only twitched a few times.
"I... I'm fine. Low blood sugar won't kill me."
Sun Siyuan: "..."
Look at yourself before you decide whether to say that!!
After Su Huaiming finished the chocolate, his symptoms eased somewhat, but he still felt awful. Sun Siyuan was terrified that Su Huaiming would hold him responsible and pressed him, "Your blood sugar is low. Do you want some pastries or fruit?"
Before Su Huaiming could answer, Sun Siyuan dashed to the refrigerator and quickly returned with desserts and fruit, setting them down in front of him. His service could only be described as extremely attentive.
Su Huaiming's complexion looked much better, and he had the strength to open his eyes and sit up straight.
Seeing how much cold sweat Su Huaiming had shed, Sun Siyuan took the initiative to bring him some tissues. Although it was his first time looking after someone, he did it quite deftly.
Sun Siyuan was usually arrogant and had others wait on him. Su Huaiming was the first person he had ever cared for so attentively.
Low blood sugar wasn't a major problem. Su Huaiming soon recovered, and his expression returned to normal. Only then did Sun Siyuan breathe a sigh of relief.
The viewers in the livestream had witnessed everything that had just happened.
[Ahhh, the sickly beauties from novels suddenly have a face!]
[First, I'm not a pervert. Second, I have sympathy. Finally, let me stress again that I'm a respectable person, but Su Huaiming's panting sounds so sexy. Can he pant some more?]
[Is Su Huaiming feeling awful? Come here and let me comfort you. Open arms.jpg]
[I thought Su Huaiming was too skinny before, but I didn't realize his health was this poor.]
[So when he didn't rehearse on the talent show, was it not because he wanted to slack off, but because his body couldn't take it?]
[I remember now. When the talent show aired, there were a few shots of Su Huaiming curled up at the very back, clutching his stomach. But he was so far away and the footage was so blurry that it was hard to recognize him... The show only included clips of Su Huaiming not taking part in practice, though, and didn't show him feeling unwell at all.]
[The platform is notorious for malicious editing. Did they do Su Huaiming dirty?]
But his haters and the other contestants' fans still wouldn't let Su Huaiming off.
[Su Huaiming knew he was in poor health but insisted on entering a singing and dancing talent show anyway. Who can he blame?]
[Exactly! If he's in poor health, he shouldn't have joined. He took up a spot and didn't even work hard. That's completely unfair to the other contestants, and even worse for the people who didn't make it in!]
[Don't be fooled by Su Huaiming. He's definitely pretending, trying to use this trick to whitewash his image.]
[Netizens these days are really blind and brain-dead. They can't even tell when someone's obviously faking an illness.]
[?? Can someone faking an illness break out in a cold sweat all over? Do your sweat glands have minds of their own?!
[Who are you calling blind and brain-dead? Su Huaiming is feeling unwell right now. A livestream can't fake that, and Sun Siyuan is right beside him. If he were really pretending, wouldn't Sun Siyuan be able to tell?]
[I hate Su Huaiming. I cursed him out when the talent show aired, and I still dislike having someone with such a trashy character in the entertainment industry. But there's no need to pretend to be blind and deny that Su Huaiming is feeling unwell right now. How is that any different from hating on him without thinking?]
The comments were arguing fiercely, but Su Huaiming and Sun Siyuan knew nothing about it. After recovering, Su Huaiming felt sticky and wanted to go upstairs for a shower.
When Su Huaiming started to stand, Sun Siyuan hurried over to help him, afraid he would fall again.
Su Huaiming waved his hand, indicating that he could walk by himself.
As Su Huaiming went upstairs, Sun Siyuan stayed right beside him so he could catch him immediately if anything happened.
Sun Siyuan saw Su Huaiming to the door. Thinking of Sun Siyuan's concern and care, Su Huaiming said apologetically, "Sorry I scared you just now."
"It's okay, as long as you've recovered," Sun Siyuan said.
He was the one who had started it. If he hadn't made Su Huaiming carry such heavy luggage and delayed him from going upstairs to get candy, Su Huaiming's reaction wouldn't have been so severe.
Su Huaiming smiled gratefully at Sun Siyuan and apologized again.
Feeling guilty, Sun Siyuan was very kind and told Su Huaiming to come find him again if he felt unwell.
[Hahahaha, is this really the prince-syndrome Sun Siyuan?]
[This is the first time I've seen Sun Siyuan so considerate and understanding!]
[Sun Siyuan may be an adult, but deep down he's no different from Xiao Xiao. Maybe Su Huaiming is naturally good at handling this type of person!]
[!!! That's an angle I'd never considered. It makes so much sense!]
[Sun Siyuan is so nice to Su Huaiming, and they look pretty good together. I'll casually ship this CP.]
[Hahahahaha, you really can ship anything!]
****
Everyone else had been in their rooms and didn't know that Su Huaiming had just been feeling unwell.
When Su Huaiming came out after his shower, he found everyone sitting in the living room.
Seeing that another new guest had arrived, Yu Xuanxuan forcibly dragged his older brother over so they could meet each other.
Yu Ruicheng was as cold as ever, looking cool and aloof, but his face clearly said he wanted to escape. Unable to bring himself to reject his younger brother's good intentions, he could only steel himself and endure it.